Protecting-rail for open cars.



P. L T .L A B E C PROTECTING I'HUL FUR OPEN CARS.

(Application filed July 16, 1902.

3 Sheets-Sheet I.

(No Model.)

INVENTOR:

WITNESSES:

: TTORNEYS NORRIS PiTERS co PHOTO-LUNG" war-march: o. c.

No. 7ll,753. Patented Oct. 2], I902.

C. E. BALTZ.

PROTECTING BAIL FOR OPEN CARS.

Application filed July 16, 1902.)

(No Model.) 3' Sheets-Sheet 2.

ATTORNEYS.

m: NORRIS PETERS cu PHOTO-LITHCL. WASHINGTON, n. c,

' m. 7||,153. Patented on. 2|, I902.

c. E. BALTZ.

PROTECTING RAIL FOR OPEN CARS.

QApplicatiun filed. July 16, 1902.)

3 Sheets8heet 3.

WAr W/ mvamom TURN EYS UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES E. BALTZ, OF RAHWAY, NEW JERSEY.

PROTECTING-RAIL FOR OPEN CARS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. '71 1,7 53, dated October 21, 1902.

Application filed July 16, 1902. Serial No. 115,761. (No model.)

To rtZZ whmn it potty concern.-

Be it known that 1, CHARLES E. BALTZ, a citizen of the United States, residing at Rahway, in the county of Union and State of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Protecting-Rails for Open (Jars, dtc. and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to'letters of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

The object of this invention is to facilitate the operation of raising or lowering the guardrails commonly employed at the sides of open tramway or trolley cars to prevent the passengers thereof from passing from the car onto the railway-track of the car moving in the opposite direction, and thus endangering the passengers. Heretofore such guardrails at the terminals of the railway-track were changed from their open to their closed positions with reference to the passage-ways between the seats of the car by the conductor and motorman grasping the opposite ends of said guard-rail and lifting it from the brackets or supports of one location and placing it upon the bracket or support of the other location, which frequently involved delay in making the change, because of the services of the two men being required. By my improvements the guard-rail can be changed by a single man.

The invention consists in the improved guard-rail and in the arrangements and com binations of parts, all substantially as will be hereinafter set forth, and finally embraced in the clauses of the claim.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, in which like letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in each of the several figures, Figure 1 is a side elevation of aitrolley-car having my improvements. Fig. 2 is an "enlarged view of portions of the same. .Fig. 3 is a plan of the guard-rail. Fig. dis a longitudinal section showing the interior of one end of the same. Fig. 5 is an elevation of a certain slotted side plate. Fig. 6 is a View similar to Fig. 4, showing a change of position of parts. Figs. 7 and 8 are cross-sections of the rail, taken at lines 00 and g, respectively; and Fig. 9 is a section taken through line 2.

In said drawings, a indicates a car having a series of transverse seats for the passengers, with passages between said seats opening at opposite sides of the said car, and b is the guard-rail, arranged at the side of the car and extending horizontally lengthwise thereof, so as to close the passages between the seats. Said guard-rail consists of a wooden strip or board I), cut out longitudinally and at its opposite ends provided with hollow metallic end pieces b providing runways for wheels or rollers c. Said hollow end pieces I) are closed at one side of the rail, preferably the side toward the car, with slotted plates or covers (1, through the slots d of which the pivotal pins 0 of the wheels 0 extend to receive the oscillating connecting-rodse. Said connectingrods, carrying the pivotal pins within the rail, extend out from the chambers within the end pieces of the rail through slots f in the bottom of said end pieces and are pivoted, as at g, to the car-body, so that when said connecting-rods oscillate in one direction or the other the guard-rail will rise from its closed to its open position or lower to said closed position.

The connecting-rods are located at or near the opposite ends of the guard-rail, and the pivotal pins 0' for the Wheels or rollers 0 extend from the free ends of said connectingrods 6 to said wheels 0 and serve also to receive the chains or wires by which'the two connecting-rods are operated simultaneously and together to effect a uniform uplift of the opposite ends of the rail, so that the latter will maintain its horizontal position while rising or lowering, the connecting-rods e being pivoted at about uniform heights on the carbody and being of substantially 'uniform lengths.

The chains or wires or connections h, combining both chains and wires, wire being employed where there is no bending, so that there will be no stretching due to wear, extend through the longitudinal holes, grooves, or passages 19 of the guard-rail and over pulleys 'i t at the ends of the guard-rail, the upper extension of the continuous connection it being attached to the pivotal pin 0 of one wheel 0 and the lower extension being attached to the pin of the other wheel. By this rail when the latter is in its lower or closing position and parallel with the vertical post or roof-support of the car when the guard-rail is in its elevated position. Suitable means, such as the adjusting-screws Z, are provided to adjust the pulleys 71 i and take up any possible wear or looseness of the connecting wires or chains h, and a lock m may be employed to stop the movement of the wheels 0 on their tracks or ways, and thus fasten the rail against improper manipulation.

The vertical roof-support or other portion of the car-body is provided with vertical ways n to receive studs, pins, or wheels 0 on the guard-rail, which serve to hold said guardrail steady while it is being raised or lowered, the walls of said ways being undercut and the studs, pins, or wheels being correspondingly flanged or headed to hold the said guardrail against the side of the said car-body, as will be understood.

As will be obvious, the construction thus described enables a single individual, such as the motorman or conductor, to change the location of the guard-rail with great ease and facility, and the outside appearance of the rail is not impaired or rendered dangerous to the passenger.

I am aware that various modifications of construction may be employed without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention, and I do not wish to be understood as limiting myself by the positive expressions above employed excepting as the state of the art may require.

Having thus described the invention, what I claim as new is l. The combination with the guard-rail, of oscillating connections adapted to be pivoted to the car, each at one end, and having rollers or wheels at the opposite end of each, said wheels or rollers being movable longitudinally with respect to the guard-rail, substantially as set forth.

2. The combination with the guard-rail, of oscillating connections adapted to be pivoted to the car at a-distance from the rail and at their ends opposite their pivotal ends being provided with rollers or wheels which are arranged on longitudinal ways of said guardrail, substantially as set forth.

3. The combination with the car having vertical ways, of a rail having means working on or in said vertical ways and having longitudinal tracks or ways at its opposite ends, and connections pivoted on the car and movable at their free ends on said longitudinal ways, substantially as set forth.

4. The combination with the car having vertical ways, of a rail having means working on or in said vertical ways and having longitudinal tracks or ways atits opposite ends, and

connections pivoted on the car and movable at their free ends on said longitudinal ways, and a handle in connection with the free end of one of said connections, substantially as set forth. f

5. The combination with the car,ofa guardrail, a handle at one end of said rail, in connection with a wheeled connection of the rail and car, whereby when the said handle is manipulated, the said wheeled connection will change its location with respect to the car, substantially as set forth.

6. The combination with the open car having transverse passages between the seats thereof and having vertical ways at the sides thereof, of a guard-rail arranged horizontally at the side of the car and movable on said vertical ways oscillating connections pivoted on said car and at their free ends provided with wheels or rollers arranged to roll lengthwise of said guard-rail, connections of the free ends of the oscillating connections and a handle for operating said parts, substan tially as set forth.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing I have hereunto set my hand this 28th day of June, 1902.

CHARLES E. BALTZ. Witnesses:

CHARLES H. PELL, O. B. PITNEY. 

